Titans Stun Fifth-Ranked Panthers
James Taraboi (Jr. • Grafton) got a second chance and took advantage of it, hitting a 26-yard field goal with no time remaining to give the UW-Oshkosh football team a 17-16 victory over Ohio Dominican University on Saturday (Sept. 20) in Columbus, Ohio.
The Panthers (2-1) blocked UW-Oshkosh's potential game-winning, 35-yard attempt with four seconds remaining. Before the play ended, an Ohio Dominican player came off the sideline to draw an illegal participation penalty. Taraboi then lined up to kick again on the game's final play and sent the Titans (2-0) to their fifth straight victory.
Ohio Dominican University entered the contest ranked fifth in the NAIA and had won 15 consecutive regular season games. The Panthers, who won their first two games by an average score of 60-10, came out of halftime with a 13-7 advantage. After punts on the third quarter's first two possessions, the Titans marched 58 yards on nine plays to take the lead. Craig McClelland (So. • Union Grove) found Garrie Fox (Fr. • Madison) for 16 yards on third down and Justin Budiac (So. • Mukwonago) added a 17-yard run to highlight the drive. A nine-yard touchdown catch from Juston Wara (So. • Oshkosh) tied the score at 13 with 5:06 to play in the third period.
After Taraboi's extra point put UW-Oshkosh ahead, 14-13, the Panthers returned the ensuing kickoff to their own 46-yard line. Cris Reisert hit Joe Farfsing for a 13-yard completion as part of a 10-play, 42-yard scoring drive. Mitch Cory knocked through a 29-yard field goal at the 2:11 mark of the third quarter for a 16-14 lead.
The Titans punted on their next two possessions before making a defensive stand in the contest's final minutes. Ohio Dominican went for it on fourth-and-one from the UW-Oshkosh 39-yard line with three minutes remaining. Chris DeBlois (Jr. • Kimberly) and Spencer Schulz (Sr. • Menomonee Falls) teamed up to stuff Reisert's quarterback keeper for no gain to take the ball away.
UW-Oshkosh's game-winning drive featured a three-yard reception by Wara on fourth-and-two, along with an 11-yard run by Budiac to enter Panthers' territory. Paul Coburn (So. • Sussex) then pulled in a 19-yard catch in the last minute to put the Titans in field-goal range.
Ohio Dominican University's opening drive ended with a failed fourth-down attempt inside the UW-Oshkosh 15-yard line. Following a Titans' punt, the Panthers missed a 37-yard field goal to keep the game scoreless. Reisert finally connected with B. Robinson on the first play of the drive for a 53-yard touchdown. The score gave Ohio Dominican a 7-0 lead with 1:23 to go in the first quarter.
Reisert completed five consecutive passes of the short-range variety to move the Panthers down the field in the second quarter. Cory made a 20-yard field goal attempt to make it a 10-0 score with 6:25 remaining in the half.
The Titans answered with a pair of 11-yard receptions by Steve Levonowich (Jr. • Kenosha) on a 60-yard touchdown drive. The seven-play stanza concluded with a 25-yard hook-up from McClelland to Wara that cut UW-Oshkosh's deficit to 10-7 with 2:04 left in the second quarter.
Ohio Dominican continued with the intermediate passing game, hitting six pass plays for eight yards or less. A 15-yard catch by Robinson converted a 3rd-and-13 to keep the Panthers' drive alive. With seven seconds left on the first-half clock, Cory nailed a 42-yard field goal to take a 13-7 lead into the break.
UW-Oshkosh prevailed despite being outgained in total yards, 367-208. The Titans picked up 96 yards on the ground, including 51 on six carries by Budiac. Levonowich chipped in with 17 carries for 31 yards. McClelland was quite efficient through the air, completing 12-of-16 passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns without an interception.
Wara paced UW-Oshkosh's receivers with four catches for 37 yards and two touchdowns. Levonowich added two grabs for 29 yards while Coburn and Fox each pulled in two receptions. UW-Oshkosh was successful on its only fourth-down try and achieved first downs on 5-of-12 third down attempts. The Titans' defensive performance featured 11 tackles from Kevin Bahl (Jr. • Muskego), 10 stops by Taraboi and a quarterback sack from DeBlois.
The Panthers came in averaging 514 yards of offense per game, including 410 in the passing department. Reisert threw 51 times, connecting on 35 for 268 yards and one touchdown. Robinson pulled in 12 catches for a game-high 144 yards and a score while Steven Williams and Josh Smart each grabbed five receptions.
Justin Brantley gained 62 yards on 14 attempts, to go along with six carries for 19 yards by Reisert, to lead the Ohio Dominican rushing attack. The Panthers converted 11-of-19 third-down attempts while failing all three times on fourth down. Ohio Dominican University's defense received nine tackles from Michael Wright and one sack by Miguel Davis.